Uly's Blog

Hi I'm Uly.

Wednesday, August 31, 2005

I visited Kirara volunteering again. As I introduced that I participated in Kirara in this spring, Kirara is a volunteering activity that we can spend some time with handicapped kids. This time I participated 2 days. I was glad to see kids and their mothers and other volunteering members again, but one of the kids was sick, so she couldn't join this time. This summer Kirara was the last Kirara because some of the kids will graduate their schools, and start working at workshops, but I was glad to know that Kirara will have Christmas party and graduation party in winter. Kirara has 6 year history on its activity, so we will invite all the volunteering staffs who have visited Kirara even once since Kirara began, and we also hope that each member's friends and family will come to the parties!

Day1: Kirara starts @10:00, so I left my home @8:00, and got there @9:45. One volunteering member and one mother and one kid were already there, so we said hi to each other waiting everyone's arriving. When more people arrived, we started singing for morning greeting. We sang Good Morning to each kid, introduced ourselves to each other, and make pairs. In the morning, we went out to a park near around. It was a bit hot day, but kids like to be outside, so when we hung around the park, the kids looked quite happy and comfy. We took photos, and chatted for a while. While we spend time with kids, mothers cook lunch for us. When we got back, we had lunch together. Some of the mothers told us how we could help their kids to eat, but some kids ate by themselves. The lunch was stew, macaroni salad, egg rolls, and pears for dessert! No, I couldn't eat them all. The lunch was too big, but extremely yummy^^. After lunch, we played inside making paper rockets with colour papers, pens, stickers, etc. My partner likes IQ quiz, so I drew "IQ" on my paper rocket^^. I am not an art person, so my drawing is terrible;-P so I just tried to make it look colourful. haha. I also drew peace marks, and lyrics from "Imagine", and world chart. Oh, well it looked quite well, and I gave it to my partner. At the end of Kirara, volunteering members wrote comments to our partners's mother, and we sang for good bye. Suddenly, my partner gave me one of beads rings which were all his handmade! I was really surprised and so happy^V^!! He was saying that he would give all the beads rings to his classmate, but I was asking him to give me once of them! and he really gave it to me! Everyone said how kind he is, and I wrote about it on his mother's note^^. Usually, I talk with volunteering staffs after kids and mothers left, but I had to cook dinner at home on that day, so I left quite soon. I was really glad to see kids agian there^^.

Day2: I had classes at my uni in the afternoon, so I could be at Kirara only in the morning. We had one more kid with her mother on that day. One mother brought photo albums of Kirara activity, so while we waited for everyone, we looked at old photos, and I could know what Kirara was like long ago^^. It was cloudy day, but since the kids become really happy when we go outside, we decided to go for a walk altogether. My partner on that day looked feel really good, as he always showed me smiles. I walked slowly pushing his wheelchair, and we enjoyed looking at small lake, trees, beautiful grasses, yucky bugs, etc. We found a very dirty reservoir, and we could see lots of mud and rubbish in there. The reservoir was very dirty, so it was funny when my partner laughed a lot looking at it. He seemed to get interested in striders too. The sky was getting even more cloudy, and it started raining! We did not have umbrellas, so volunteering members worried that kids would get cold. We hurried to our room, but my partner looked excited! I was relieved that my partner seemed enjoying rain, but anyway I walked a bit faster pushing his chair. I am very bad at directions, but my partner told me which way to go back everytime, so we could go back to our room safely. It was around noon then, and I had to leave for school, so I went to a lunch room with everyone, and said good bye there. I missed Japan's mother meal "Niku-jyaga"!! (beaf & potato with tasty soup). Oh, well next time.

I could have very nice days at Kirara again, and really look forward to our chiristmas party and the kids graduation party. In the photo albums, I saw old Chiristmas party of Kirara, and there were lots of dinners and sweets on the table! Thoes were all the mothers cookings, so I look forward those yummys too^v^! All the kids at Kirara are very good and beautiful, so I look forward to seeing them again in winter^^.

Saturday, August 27, 2005

"Ups & Downs"

In the depressed world
You are alone, feel so small
Like a little child
I do not want to see such sad expressions on your face any more
Standing up hand in hand
In future, my wish will reach you

Where is the truth? I have been thinking what I can do
When I look around, the world is full of questionings
Where is the truth, if you forget this sky's blue?
Even if tears come down many more times...

Know that every life has ups & downs
Sometimes you may lose hope, but
Every way never be the same
So do not give it up, and try again
The tears you will have next
Will be shared below this wide sky
I believe with this hand,
I believe together we get over

How much does such day-to-day life mean
I cannot see
Find myself looking at a clock vaguely
In future your wish will reach over here

Where is the truth? I have been thinking what I can do
When I look around, the world is full of questionings
Where is the truth, if you forget this sky's blue?
Even if tears come down many more times...

Know that every life has ups & downs
Sometimes you may lose hope, but
Every way never be the same
So do not give it up, and try again
The tears you will have next
Will be shared below this wide sky
I believe with this hand
I believe together we get over

The dream I dared on that day
Never be tainted
Since then, oh baby tell me how have you been?
Now you do not have to cry no more
Just open your door
Face the sorrow
You have already noticed that
You still can fly

Please always say to me "Stay strong, but
Never forget nobody can live alone
I do not want to see you cry no more
Tomorrow morn' your life keeps going on"

Please always say to me " Stay strong, but
Never forget nobody can live alone"

(Namie Amuro & Nao YMT, 2005)